The present invention relates to a vane holding assembly, and, more particularly, to such an assembly for adjustably and removably supporting fabric or other pliable material vanes of the type employed as vertically disposed strip curtains, venetian blinds, louvers and the like.
Various types of pliable vane holding devices are known, as typified by the inventions disclosed in prior U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,625,219; 3,125,154; 3,298,425 and 4,116,257.
In the constructions of U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,125,154; 3,298,425 and 4,116,257 cloth or fabric vanes of fixed length are seamed and have bars or inserts fitted through the seams for attachment to carriers or the like. This type of construction does not easily permit adjustments of the lengths of the vanes in the event of vane shrinkage, nor does the same easily permit standard sized vane lengths to be adjusted as required to accommodate for non-standard or customized vane installations.
On the other hand, U.S. Pat. No. 2,625,219 does disclose an arrangement which will permit vane length adjustments. To this end, the end of the vane is fitted through an elongated slot in a vane holding plate and positively locked in place by means of an elongated spring clip, which presses the fabric through the slot. Although this construction will inherently permit adjustments in vane length, in the event of shrinkage or the like, a drawback thereof is that it lacks an aesthetically pleasing, neat-looking appearance which, obviously, is extremely important in decorative window arrangements. A further drawback is that it is not readily removable from its associated vane carrier.
An additional drawback of all pliable vane holding devices of which I am aware is that they are unsuited for use in combination with resilient hook support devices of the type disclosed for instance in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,516,473; 4,122,884 and 4,140,169.